1. Technical Field
The invention relates to anti-shoplifting devices, and more particularly to an anti-shoplifting device for merchandise having a cylindrical surface and in particular, for bottles having a cylindrical neck. The invention provides a security device that holds an electronic article surveillance tag (EAS tag) which is concealed within a rigid housing which is secured by a ratchet strap around the neck of the bottle. The security device contains a magnetic actuated lock, which when in locked position prevents removal of the security device from the bottle or other article of merchandise.
2. Background Information
Shoplifting from retail establishments has become an increasing problem in recent times. In response to the shoplifting problem, many types of anti-shoplifting devices have been developed for protecting different types of merchandise. Many of these devices include tags that are attached to the items of merchandise in a manner where they cannot be easily removed from the merchandise and which will sound an alarm when removed from the store. It is preferred that these EAS tags be hidden within the items such that a shoplifter cannot remove the tag without breaking a portion of the merchandise or the container in which it is installed. Many of these security devices are used to protect recorded media such as CDs, DVDs, VHS cassettes, etc. which are stored within rectangular parallelepiped boxes, many of which contain either a mechanical locking device locked by a mechanical key or a magnetically operated locking device or a combination thereof. Some examples of the magnetically operated locking devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,422,387; 6,666,330, 6,676,175, and 6,755,055.
Although these devices have proved satisfactory for such articles, they are not adaptable for articles such as bottles which are usually formed of glass and have a neck and closure cap thereon. Some of these bottles contain expensive products such as wine and liquor, which in some locations are stored on a shelf and not behind a counter, thus becoming susceptible to shoplifting. It is a desire to protect these bottles by attaching a security device easily around the neck of the bottle which contains an EAS tag, which devices can be reused to reduce cost to the retail establishment, and which devices can be placed easily and rapidly on the neck of the bottle for display without occupying an appreciable amount of storage and display space. These devices also must be able to be mass produced relatively inexpensive to enable the retail establishment to purchase a number of the devices for use on their displayed products.
Various types of devices have been developed which use a ratchet-type strap which is secured around an object, preventing removal of the strap to protect various items. Many of these devices use a flat plastic strap, either attached to or formed as part of the latching mechanisms, which for many applications do not have any lock and do not contain an EAS tag. Examples of such ratchet-type straps are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,214,808, 4,128,220, 4,287,644, 4,506,415, 4,580,319, 4,958,411, and 5,123,686.
Other types of devices using a ratchet strap which is desired since it provides an infinite number of latching positions on an item to be protected, has an EAS tag and some type of mechanical key operated locking mechanism. Examples of such prior art security devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,437,172, 5,524,463, 5,969,613, 6,311,531, 6,326,890, and 6,044,669. Some of these devices have also been used for protecting bottles which includes an EAS tag and a mechanical locking device such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,098,256.
Although many of these devices perform satisfactory for their intended purpose, many of them are relatively expensive to manufacture due to the number of separate components that must be assembled. Also, many of these devices are relatively difficult to install and remove from the article of merchandise due to the particular type of latching or locking mechanism and mechanical actuated key for unlocking the security device and removing it from the article being protected.
Therefore, the need exists for an improved security device preferably for use on cylindrical-shaped objects, such as bottles, which device contains an EAS tag in a concealed housing which will actuate an alarm if removed from the store without first removing the security device from the purchased article, and which can be unlocked easily by a magnetic key to avoid the use of mechanical actuated locks which are usually more difficult to operate and require numerous components for incorporating the same in a protected housing.